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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Three Illinois scientists are among 126 recipients of the 2018 Sloan Research Fellowships from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. According to the foundation, the awards “honor early career scholars whose achievements mark them as among the very best scientific minds working today.” Winners receive a two-year $65,000 fellowship to further their research.

Chen, a recipient in the field of chemistry, joined the Illinois faculty in 2015 and is an affiliate of the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at Illinois. Her research focuses on active soft matter, an artificial analog of living systems that can replicate, regenerate and, ultimately, evolve in a changing environment. She is a graduate of Peking University and received a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Huang, a recipient in the field of physics, joined the Illinois faculty in 2015. She uses advanced electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy techniques to study the structure, bonding, electronic and optical properties of materials at the atomic scale and to design new nanomaterials and devices. She is a graduate of Carleton College and received a Ph.D. from Cornell University.

Diao, a recipient in the field of chemistry, joined the Illinois Faculty in 2015 and also is an affiliate of the Beckman Institute. She works to reinvent methodologies for directed assembly of functional molecules inspired by living systems and to realize high-performance printed functional materials to advance soft electronics and personalized healthcare. She is a graduate of Tsinghua University in Beijing and received a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.